SEO consultants in London have been carefully watching changes in the economy as well as the online marketing industry. With 2017 just around the corner, many businesses are planning ahead in regard to establishing their digital marketing and SEO campaigns. It only stands to reason that autumn is (arguably) one of the best times to formulate an effective strategy and leverage the increasing amount of tools that are now available. Let us take a look at some top trends in SEO to monitor in 2017.

Are Desktops Dead?

The answer to this question is a rather flaccid, “Not quite yet.” According to the latest figures, only 11 per cent of all Internet users visit online pages via a personal computer. The reason that this observation is important is that smartphones and tablets are expected to take the lion’s share of online access next year. In turn, modern SEO campaigns need to accommodate such users. Static websites will quickly fall by the wayside and in a busy city such a London, this status may lead to a business’ obscurity in no time at all.

Post-Brexit SEO Marketing Woes

There is no doubt that Brexit has affected various portions of the British economy in different ways. Very few, however, touch upon how this move could potentially impact London SEO services in the coming year. According to recent figures, London and the South East have been affected the most drastically. We could surmise that this is at least partially due to the concern over import-export legislation. In turn, many online businesses will be looking to streamline their marketing techniques to save money.

What does this mean with regard to the SEO community? Three likely outcomes of this scenario may be: the use of more stringent keywords and targeted meta descriptions;
the desire to leverage the existing community of mobile phone users; and, a further avoidance of any practices which are not in accordance with current regulations.

We need to appreciate the silver lining behind these apparent changes. The one benefit that will likely be seen is that SEO strategies will become even more stringent and any remaining “black hat” techniques should be removed from any decent marketing strategy. These are all important benefits that London-based online businesses should take into account.

Sources:

2016 U.S. Cross-Platform Future in Focus, ComScore
London and South East economy hit hardest by Brexit, The Telegraph